"Barcelona is the first city in the world for per capita sales of Brompton bicycles, including London," says Oscar Alcaraz, director general of Brompton Junction, the company that manages the brand's shops. These highly-sought after bicycles are a common sight on the streets of the Catalan capital; so much so that half of the Brompton bikes in Spain are to be found in Barcelona. Their users are committed fans and now they will have an official store for the English brand on Carrer de la Diputació. In fact, it is the largest the brand has in the world.
Barcelona's turn
The sale of these folding bicycles began in Spain 15 years ago with a strong distribution network in shops, which made it "politically incorrect that Brompton should set up its own shop and provide competition."
But now the time has come. This decision was well overdue. The company says that "the arrival of Brompton Junction in Barcelona establishes the brand and creates a greater presence inside the city that benefits all the other vendors. The proof is that in every city in which a Brompton Junction has opened, the number of sales has gone up."
In Spain, there are some 40,000 Brompton bicycles in circulation. In Barcelona, there are between 15,000 and 20,000 on the streets daily. The Catalan capital makes up half of the brand's Spanish market. Thus, it makes a lot of sense to "open an official shop and spread the Brompton culture among Catalan users." To get to this point, however, the Brompton story goes back to England in 1975.
Artisanal engineering
"The first prototype was ridable, but it was something that makes me feel profound shame as an engineer." These are the words of Andrew Ritchie, founder and designer of the Brompton folding bicycle.
The company tells how Ritchie was working as a landscaper when his father introduced him to Australian accountant Bill Ingram, who wanted to set up a factory to make Bickerton bicycles. Ritchie quickly saw that this bicycle could be greatly improved. The engineer convinced 10 friends to invest 100 pounds each to build a prototype, which saw the light in 1977. The first trial folding bicycles were kept in Ritchie's flat in South Kensington, in London. The view of the Brompton chapel from the flat provided the name of the brand.
In the brand's first years, Ritchie made the bicycles for friends. With some difficulty, the company worked. Its production was on a small-scale of 50 units that sold easily. There was only one drawback: the Brompton was heavier than the Bickerton. The steel wheels were a problem and no supplier wanted to produce them on such a small scale. In 1982, Andrew stopped production due to a lack of investors.
By chance, a friend of Ritchie's noticed that the businessman Julian Vereker had two folding bicycles on his yacht in the French port of Cherbourg: "A friend of mine makes much better folding bicycles than these," the woman told Verker, who promptly got involved in the Brompton project and production resumed.
Brompton set up a factory in Brentford, in Middlesex. With later improvements to make them lighter and with a smarter design, the waiting list for the bicycles quickly grew. In the 1980s, the bicycles sold so well that there were some 40 outlets around the UK. Sales on the continent also began to grow, with exports to Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, France and Belgium. In fact, it became impossible to satisfy the demand. After moving the factory to Chiswick Park and raising production, the company won the Queen's Award for exports in 1995.
International expansion began in 2011 with a Brompton Junction shop opening in Kobe, in Japan. Today, the company has 11 shops in London, Milan, Hamburg, Munich, Amsterdam, Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo, Chengdu and, from Thursday, also in Barcelona.
Once the company had become successful, Ritchie began to ease his workload on turning 65. William Butler-Adams took over as the company's director general in 2008. Since then, the company has gone from a turnover of two million pounds to 30 million and its staff from 27 people to more than 240. Some 80% of the bicycles –all made in London- are exported to 44 countries. Despite the crisis and the price (from 800 euros), Brompton bicycles have continued to conquer our cities.
The success has been such, that the Brenford brand is now struggling to keep up with demand. With an annual production of 45,000 units, the aim is to get to 100,000 units by 2021. And to do this, they will have to move.
Made by hand, quality, folding and light
Oscar Alcaraz says that what makes these bicycles unique is that "each piece is made by hand in London and can be highly personalised," unlike other brands that use pre-made components. According to him, the frame is soldered at low temperatures so that the bicycle "has a lifespan of more than 40 years."
Ritchie's obsession was to make them as small and light as possible –each bike weighs 10kg. Next came making them fold easily and quickly. This means that "it has not been beaten by any other brand," he says, and the folded bicycle comes in at 50x50x30cm –the size of a suitcase. This makes it "the perfect bicycle for the city."
A lot of people during the crisis have opted to use bicycles as an alternative to getting around: the number of cyclists continues to rise. While it is true that Barcelona has the Bicing network, it is not completely trustworthy and stolen bicycles continues to be a problem. "That is why Brompton has been so successful, it is more expensive than a standard bicycle but it cannot be stolen because you never leave it tied up in the street... and folded it fits under your desk in the office!" Alcaraz exclaims.
Unconditional fans
Given their high quality and long lifespan, Brompton bicycles are not for every pocket. "People who bought the bicycles 15 years ago did so for objective reasons and not because of the brand's reputation," says Alcaraz. They were above all liberal professionals, architects, IT technicians, designers, people with high spending power. Later, came the aspirational purchases: "So many people could not be wrong," says Alcaraz, and sales went through the roof.
And so the fan phenomenon began. Brompton bikes have been to the South Pole and around the world, fans organise folding and unfolding contests – the record is 5.96 and 7.05 seconds- and they even get together for workshops, to share secrets, experiences and tricks that can be used with the bikes. Brompton has become a lovemark: "Asians take advantage of their visits to Europe to buy a Brompton, because in Asia the price of the bikes is higher due to tariffs," says the company.
And the company itself has got involved in this passion. On Saturday, the firm is organising the Brompton World Championship, a cycling race on the Circuit de Catalunya. Some 200 fans of the brand will do three laps, in suits and ties in the purest of British style. It all begins with unfolding the bicycle.
Barcelona's turn
The sale of these folding bicycles began in Spain 15 years ago with a strong distribution network in shops, which made it "politically incorrect that Brompton should set up its own shop and provide competition."
But now the time has come. This decision was well overdue. The company says that "the arrival of Brompton Junction in Barcelona establishes the brand and creates a greater presence inside the city that benefits all the other vendors. The proof is that in every city in which a Brompton Junction has opened, the number of sales has gone up."
In Spain, there are some 40,000 Brompton bicycles in circulation. In Barcelona, there are between 15,000 and 20,000 on the streets daily. The Catalan capital makes up half of the brand's Spanish market. Thus, it makes a lot of sense to "open an official shop and spread the Brompton culture among Catalan users." To get to this point, however, the Brompton story goes back to England in 1975.
Artisanal engineering
"The first prototype was ridable, but it was something that makes me feel profound shame as an engineer." These are the words of Andrew Ritchie, founder and designer of the Brompton folding bicycle.
The company tells how Ritchie was working as a landscaper when his father introduced him to Australian accountant Bill Ingram, who wanted to set up a factory to make Bickerton bicycles. Ritchie quickly saw that this bicycle could be greatly improved. The engineer convinced 10 friends to invest 100 pounds each to build a prototype, which saw the light in 1977. The first trial folding bicycles were kept in Ritchie's flat in South Kensington, in London. The view of the Brompton chapel from the flat provided the name of the brand.
In the brand's first years, Ritchie made the bicycles for friends. With some difficulty, the company worked. Its production was on a small-scale of 50 units that sold easily. There was only one drawback: the Brompton was heavier than the Bickerton. The steel wheels were a problem and no supplier wanted to produce them on such a small scale. In 1982, Andrew stopped production due to a lack of investors.
By chance, a friend of Ritchie's noticed that the businessman Julian Vereker had two folding bicycles on his yacht in the French port of Cherbourg: "A friend of mine makes much better folding bicycles than these," the woman told Verker, who promptly got involved in the Brompton project and production resumed.
Brompton set up a factory in Brentford, in Middlesex. With later improvements to make them lighter and with a smarter design, the waiting list for the bicycles quickly grew. In the 1980s, the bicycles sold so well that there were some 40 outlets around the UK. Sales on the continent also began to grow, with exports to Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, France and Belgium. In fact, it became impossible to satisfy the demand. After moving the factory to Chiswick Park and raising production, the company won the Queen's Award for exports in 1995.
 |
| Ritchie and his team make the bicycles by hand in London |
International expansion began in 2011 with a Brompton Junction shop opening in Kobe, in Japan. Today, the company has 11 shops in London, Milan, Hamburg, Munich, Amsterdam, Beijing, Shanghai, Tokyo, Chengdu and, from Thursday, also in Barcelona.
Once the company had become successful, Ritchie began to ease his workload on turning 65. William Butler-Adams took over as the company's director general in 2008. Since then, the company has gone from a turnover of two million pounds to 30 million and its staff from 27 people to more than 240. Some 80% of the bicycles –all made in London- are exported to 44 countries. Despite the crisis and the price (from 800 euros), Brompton bicycles have continued to conquer our cities.
The success has been such, that the Brenford brand is now struggling to keep up with demand. With an annual production of 45,000 units, the aim is to get to 100,000 units by 2021. And to do this, they will have to move.
Made by hand, quality, folding and light
Oscar Alcaraz says that what makes these bicycles unique is that "each piece is made by hand in London and can be highly personalised," unlike other brands that use pre-made components. According to him, the frame is soldered at low temperatures so that the bicycle "has a lifespan of more than 40 years."
Ritchie's obsession was to make them as small and light as possible –each bike weighs 10kg. Next came making them fold easily and quickly. This means that "it has not been beaten by any other brand," he says, and the folded bicycle comes in at 50x50x30cm –the size of a suitcase. This makes it "the perfect bicycle for the city."
A lot of people during the crisis have opted to use bicycles as an alternative to getting around: the number of cyclists continues to rise. While it is true that Barcelona has the Bicing network, it is not completely trustworthy and stolen bicycles continues to be a problem. "That is why Brompton has been so successful, it is more expensive than a standard bicycle but it cannot be stolen because you never leave it tied up in the street... and folded it fits under your desk in the office!" Alcaraz exclaims.
Unconditional fans
Given their high quality and long lifespan, Brompton bicycles are not for every pocket. "People who bought the bicycles 15 years ago did so for objective reasons and not because of the brand's reputation," says Alcaraz. They were above all liberal professionals, architects, IT technicians, designers, people with high spending power. Later, came the aspirational purchases: "So many people could not be wrong," says Alcaraz, and sales went through the roof.
And so the fan phenomenon began. Brompton bikes have been to the South Pole and around the world, fans organise folding and unfolding contests – the record is 5.96 and 7.05 seconds- and they even get together for workshops, to share secrets, experiences and tricks that can be used with the bikes. Brompton has become a lovemark: "Asians take advantage of their visits to Europe to buy a Brompton, because in Asia the price of the bikes is higher due to tariffs," says the company.
And the company itself has got involved in this passion. On Saturday, the firm is organising the Brompton World Championship, a cycling race on the Circuit de Catalunya. Some 200 fans of the brand will do three laps, in suits and ties in the purest of British style. It all begins with unfolding the bicycle.
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| Brompton races in the purest British style have arrived in Barcelona |
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